Felix Dennis

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Dennis, right, with from left, Jim Anderson and Richard Neville during the trial at Old Bailey in 1971Getty

Last updated at 12:00AM, June 24 2014

Hedonistic media mogul who was jailed for obscenity and went on to build up one of Britain’s most successful publishers

Few predicted that Felix Dennis would gain anything more than the notoriety of
being one of the co-defendants in the Oz magazine obscenity trial of
1971. The penniless drop-out had gleefully latched on to the underground
alternative magazine, but he later admitted to no great ethical attachment
apart from making money and, indeed, he went on to become one of Britain’s
most successful publishing magnates. All the more remarkably, he retained
his maverick outlook, thick shock of unruly hair and propensity for sex,
drugs and rock’n’roll that he said made him feel “absolutely fantastic”.